The hospitality program will be launched by Monroe College at the beginning of October 2010 and is expected to enroll 150 students in the first phase. The program is being done in collaboration with the St Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association (SLHTA), the Ministry of Tourism, the Ministry of Communications and Works partnered with the FCCA and St Lucia Development Bank.
The hospitality aspect will be made up of six different programs students can enroll in including house keeping, bartending and general service. Tuition for the program that consists of three months in classroom (academic) and three months of practicals at various hotels is expected to be low cost, and upon completion students earn a certificate.
“We are working with the cruise industry, where it is hoped that the majority of these students will be employed by the cruise industry,” Chastanet continued. “One if not several cruise lines will be offering a program where the student granduants who come to work with them, once they stay employed with them for a period of time the company, will pay off their student loan.”
The Tourism Minister said the cruise industry was expected to employ 34,000 people within the next four to five years and the government was hoping to get as many as 1000 St Lucians placed in the coming years.
